


ease my mind

by ItsCryingTime



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: I'm writing this because I'm gay, M/M, and legacies has no mlm ships and it makes me sad, so we're gonna fix that right the heck now
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-05
Updated: 2020-03-03
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:41:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22566475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsCryingTime/pseuds/ItsCryingTime
Summary: One of those "what if" fics. What if Sebastian had chosen to appear to MG instead of Lizzie that first night? At first, Sebastian is just looking for somone-anyone-to get him out of that godforsaken box. MG needs a way to get over Lizzie for good, and he still needs help suppressing the "ripper" within him. This could end in disaster. Or...possibly it could just be the thing that saves them both.
Relationships: Milton "MG" Greasley/Sebastian
Comments: 12
Kudos: 47





	1. Chapter 1

MG hurried to the old mill after having to compel some random human girl to forget yet another monster attack. Dr. Saltzman wasn't even the headmaster anymore and he was still taking orders. How unfair was that?

It didn't matter. He had to stay on Saltzman's good side, right? If he wanted to even have a chance with Lizzie. Using his vampire speed he nearly crashed into her as she was walking away from the mill with an annoyed look on her face.

“Lizzie, I-.” he started to exlain. She put her hand up.

“I don't want to hear it. My _year of yes_ is really going to be off to a rough start if I'm already getting stood up by guys.” Lizzie snapped. “Should've been on time, Greasley.”

With that, she pushed past him making her way back to the school. MG stood in defeat, watching her go. His one shot was blown, all because he still couldn't say no when Alaric called on him for another favor. Why couldn't Kaleb do it? Or really any of the other vampires?

He trudged on to the old mill anyway. He was too irritated with the situation to go back to school, and it seemed to trigger those ripper instincts buried deep inside.

“Great job, Milton. You blew it. Again.” he muttered, kicking an old board aside as he walked aimlessly among the ruins. A creak in the floorboards caused him to jump.

“Milton...is it?” a voice said from behind him. He spun around, coming face to face with some guy who looked like he'd stumbled out of dress rehearsal. Or a rennaissance faire. And that second one couldn't be true, because MG was pretty sure he'd know about it.

“Uh. MG, actually.” He frowned. This definitely didn't look like any of the current students. Maybe someone new? “How...how did you get here, exactly?”

The other boy shrugged, “It's a complicated matter. I don't want to bore you with the details.”

MG decided to try for a little more information. If he was on school grounds, he had to be some sort of magical creatures. Witch, vampire, werewolf...phoenix. You never knew these days. “Are you like a new student here? Because you'd probably wanna talk to Josie or Lizzie, they give the tours-”

“School?” he asked. “This is some kind of school?”

“Yeah. I mean, not _this_ specifically. This is the Old Mill. Or, the only mill...but we call it the Old Mill. The school is just down the path...”

The stranger then stumbled a bit, and leaned against a post to steady himself. MG took a few steps forward. “Damn, are you okay?”

“I-I'm fine. You should keep your distance, really.” he urged.

“Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you.” MG said quickly, “You just look like you're gonna pass out.”

Sebastian smirked, and looked away, “It's not _that_ I'm worried about. I should go. I...I need to sort this out.”

“Go? Go where? Who _are_ you?”

Oh, my manners, forgive me. Sebastian.” he grinned. “And I believe you are called Milton.”

“Um. MG is fine, really.” MG said awkwardly. He stuck out his hand, but Sebastian stepped back.

“It was good to meet you, Milton.” he said with a smile, “Good to see a friendly face.”

He turned and stepped out of the building. Once he was out of sight, it dawned on MG that this could be another Malivore monster of some kind. And he's just let it walk away. Because...well...he was kind of _distracted_ , to be perfectly honest. Yeah, he was crazy about Lizzie, but this Sebastian character wasn't terrible to look at.

He'd only really told Josie about...that stuff. She'd been one of the first people to talk to him when he first came to Salvatore, and she was dating Penelope at the time so he knew that at least one person would understand. He hadn't really told anyone before then. Being the son of a preacher and whatnot...well it made things a little bit more challenging.

MG shook his head to clear his thoughts. No, he couldn't let some stupid attraction get in the way of dealing with a potential malivore monster on the loose. He had to figure out what to do, and come back and hunt this guy down.

* * *

He wasn't quite sure how he managed it. He'd gotten just enough of that rancid blood—wherever it came from—to come to consciousness, but he was still bound and trapped in this godforsaken coffin. Still, when he reached out with his mind, he found this Milton boy right away. Something must be broken inside him. Sebastian knew he was far too weak to reach out any stable person. And his grasp had slipped away so quickly. He had to leave, before he vanished before Milton's eyes and really screwed this up.

Desiccated and frozen in place, he mentally sighed. He would have to conserve his energy if he wanted to reach Milton again. And even then, he'd have to seek him out. If he wasn't careful, the energy he gained from that small amount of blood would deplete and he'd continue to be stuck there for eternity.

“ _Oh, Milton,”_ he thought, _“You are about to be a very important person, if I'm to get out of this mess.”_


	2. Chapter 2

MG decided he would go back that night. He didn't tell anyone what happened at the mill. Because, well, he was embarassed. He couldn't just say “Sorry guys, I let a potential monster slip away because his eyes had this whole smouldering effect and you know how these things go...”

Nope. That would not go over well at all.

He thought maybe the mill would be a good place to start because it just felt like the type of place a villian might hang out? Or maybe if he searched around he might find a clue as to who this person might be.

MG had thought of asking Lizzie for help, but she was mad at him. And then he thought of Josie, but Josie and Landon were spending every waking moment together, and if this _was_ a monster from Malivore, he didn't want to lead it straight to it's target.

He was too embarrassed to tell Kaleb exactly why he'd let Sebastian get away in the first place.

“Alright.” he said nervously, pacing the perimeter of the building. The whole place looked ready to collapse, but the witches had spells to keep everything stable, which they renewed every so often. “I'm a vampire. Super strong, super fast, super everything. I can handle one monster. Especially one who just looks like a normal dude.”

“ _Oh_ , a vampire. That is honestly a relief.” he heard Sebastian's familiar voice. Good lord, how was he so _quiet_?

“Whoa!” MG exclaimed, “You can't just sneak up on people like that! What if I had a weapon?”

“Do you?”

MG blinked. Stupidly, he did not. “That's not the point.”

Sebastian moved closer, and MG took a step back. So much for being brave. “I could really use your help.”

“What are you?” MG asked cautiously, “Are you another malivore...thing? Because let me tell you, my friends and I have killed a LOT of you guys. There were zombies!”

“I've never heard of this malivore you speak of. But I'm like you, my friend.” Sebastian allowed his fangs to show as he said this. Milton had never felt more relieved. A vampire. He could handle a vampire, easily. “What is a...zombie?”

“It's like...so someone gets a virus and it kills them but then their body reanimates and—wait no, _you_ need to answer _my_ questions. What are you doing on campus? If you're not from malivore and you never heard of Salvatore what are you here for?”

Sebastian looked thoughtful for a moment, and walked around observing the surroundings.”This area seems to have changed a lot while I've been incapacitated. I wonder, are the tunnels still intact?”

“The tunnels? Yeah, me and Kaleb were down there not long ago...they connect to the basement at school.”

Sebastian's face seemed to brighten at this news. “That is fantastic news, Milton. We are going to get along so well.” he stumbled forward and then fell to his knees. “I...I have to go. Try...try to go to the caves when you can. Maybe if you're closer...”

As MG blinked, Sebastian vanished. Had he simply run off? “What the hell?” MG muttered. Maybe he was losing his mind. He'd certainly be losing his mind if he honestly went down into the tunnel alone to search for Sebastian. He had to enlist help now.

* * *

He was running out of time. That blood had only gone so far.

He just needed Milton to do as instructed, and maybe, hopefully, he could get out of this awful place. What year was it? What were those appalling clothes Milton was wearing?

SO many questions. And still, he was so damn hungry.

* * *

“You know, most girls would probably say no when you ask them to follow you into the tunnels underneath the school,” Lizzie mused, “And I definitely should have, just because you so rudely stood me up.”

“So why are you here?”

“Because you've been acting really weird the past couple of days, and I'm just nosy enough to want to know why. But seriously, why are we tracking down some mysterious dude in cosplay in the _underground tunnels_ where no one will hear us scream when he kills us?”

MG furrowed his brow. She had a point. When she put it _that_ way, it did sound completely insane.

“I don't know...he didn't seem dangerous. He wanted my help.”

“He's luring you into a creepy hidden tunnel.”

“Ah, it worked. It's easier to find you down here.” Sebastian said, again seemingly from nowhere. Once again, he was behind MG, standing there as if he'd been following them the whole time.

“How did you...did you follow us down here?” MG asked

“In a way.”

“Uhm...Greasley...” Lizzie said, sounding bewildered.

“ _This_ is the guy.” MG explained, waving a hand at Sebastian.

“Oh, I should probably tell you, she can't see me.” Sebastian said with an apologetic smile.

“What!?”

“MG have you completely lost your mind?” Lizzie demanded, “Oh my god. Is this like...a ripper side-effect? Do ripper vampires hallucinate? You dragged me down here for a _hallucination_?”

MG looked between the two of them, speechless. To him, Sebastian looked as real as ever. He reached out and grasped the other vampire's arm, which was solid. If he was a hallucination, he shouldn't be solid right?”

“No! No, I...at least...I don't think I did.”

“You better explain what the hell is going on.” Lizzie said expectantly. “If you're about to have some kind of breakdown, I'm locking you in one of the wolf cells.”

“My body is down here...somewhere. I'm sure it's close.” Sebastian explained, “I half-woke up from some rancid blood that was spilled onto the box I'm currently stuck in. But not enough. I need you to find my body and revive me.”

“Well...well, can't you find a way to appear to Lizzie too so I look a little less insane?”

“The mental effort it takes to appear to _one_ person is difficult enough, let alone two.” Sebastian said impatiently, “But fine, for the sake of your self-esteem, I shall try. At least her mind seems...damaged enough.”

“Hey, watch it.” MG warned. But Sebastian seemed to be ignoring him, and instead focusing intently on Lizzie. Whatever he'd done, must have worked because she jumped back in surprise.

“What the-” she gasped, finally seeing Sebastian. And then she looked him up and down, and a slow smile formed. “You know what? You're right, MG. We really should rescue our new friend.”

And that was about the time MG decided maybe he'd been better off with Lizzie thinking he'd gone insane.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a bit slow-going right now, but it's about to pick up quite soon. I've already got a pretty intimate scene written out...just need to get there first lol.

They followed the winding tunnels beneath the school, and finally found the coffin in the center of an open cavern. “Well...here he is.” MG said. He ripped the lid off the coffin, revealing the nearly mummified body inside. Sebastian stepped over, gazing down at his body.

“Terrible.” he muttered. “A complete waste of my natural good looks.”

“Try to focus.” MG said with a roll of his eyes. “Now what?”

Sebastian's eyes drifted to Lizzie. “Well...I'm sure you both know how to revive a vampire.”

“Don't even think about it.”

“A _few_ drops, Milton.” Sebastian pleaded. “And the source is literally right there.”

Lizzie's mouth dropped open. “You've got to be joking. We know _nothing_ about you. You're not getting anywhere near my blood. And MG here is a ripper. I don't feel like dying today.”

MG looked away, ashamed. He'd hoped to avoid that topic for a while longer. Sebastian stared at him intently for a moment.

“I thought this was a school. Have they done nothing to help you control it?”

“I'm completely in control.” MG snapped. Sebastian rubbed his temples.

“This is too much, trying to project to both of you.” he glanced towards Lizzie, “My apologies.”

MG surmised what had happened, as Sebastian was still perfectly visible to him but Lizzie looked bewildered for a moment, looking around the room. “Oh, that's just rude.” she muttered.

Sebastian turned to him, “So that was a minor lie. It _is_ difficult to maintain this, but the primary issue is...I need blood, and I need it soon, Milton. If you won't procure it from your lovely friend here, how exactly do you plan on helping me?”

“I never said I was _going_ to wake you up. We don't know anything about you, or what you were like when you were alive...ish.”

“I simply want to get out of that wretched casket, and leave this place.” Sebastian said impatiently.

“I'm gonna need more info than that.”

Sebastian narrowed his eyes and stormed towards MG, leaving just inches between them. The closeness was a little...too much.

But almost instantly, he calmed and took a step back.

“This is useless. I think I'll try a new approach.” he said, and then blinked out of view.

“Oh, you're showing yourself to me now?” Lizzie asked, “Wow, I'm _honored._ ”

Sebastian must have been saying something, because Lizzie was listening intently. Her expression softened. “Oh...” she said. “That's awful.”

“Lizzie, don't fall for anything he says.”

“He lost the love of his life, MG!” she protested, and glanced back to Sebastian. “Yeah, it's Lizzie. Elizabeth but...that's boring.”

“What a convenient story.”

She blushed then, seemingly at something Sebastian said, and MG felt a twinge of jealousy...but he wasn't sure who exactly he was jealous of.

“I'll be back. MG, you stay here. I hope you don't mind animal blood, it's all we have....yeah, well, beggars can't be choosers and _no one_ is going near my blood.”

She turned and walked out through the tunnel they'd come from. “Seriously?!” MG called out after her. “One sob story, and you're gonna wake up a vampire you don't even know?!”

But she clearly wasn't paying attention. Sebastian popped back into his field of vision.

“I have a way with words.” he grinned. He glanced in Lizzie's direction though. “If it eases your worries...I was completely honest with her. The details are muddled but...Cassandra...I remember why she put me down here. I just can't remember much else.”

“Yeah well...don't be trying anything with Lizzie.”

“I have nothing but honorable intentions with Elizabeth.” he said, and then bit his lip, “Besides...mortals are...too fragile. Even the witches.”

“You clearly haven't met many witches.” MG snorted. “Between Lizzie, and her sister Josie...they could take over the world.”

“Look, if you want me to leave when I wake, I will. I should like to stay at this...school of yours. But, you've already done quite a lot to help me.” he said, with sincerity that MG had never seen before. “Thank you, Milton.”

There was something there, in his eyes, when they looked at each other, and then Sebastian quickly looked away and took to pacing back and forth in the cave instead. They were mostly silent for the rest of the time. MG tried not to focus too much on the other vampire. If he stayed, it was clear Lizzie would stake a claim, and if he left then...well, why think too much about what he couldn't have? And why even _want it?_ He still had no proof this guy wasn't pure evil.

Lizzie returned within an hour with bags of blood. She tossed one to MG, “Thought you might be getting hungry too, and I don't want to you to start looking at me like a buffet.”

Then she walked over to the casket and opened up one of the packs. “Alright. Rise and shine, Sebastian,” she declared, “Welcome to the 21st century.”


	4. Chapter 4

“Oh good lord. That is horrendous. What _is_ that?” Sebastian exclaimed as he came to. He examined the bag of blood, and took another drink, and gagged rather dramatically.

“Not sure.” Lizzie shrugged. “Rabbit, deer, squirrel, really whatever they manage to kill and drain.”

“It's not _human blood_?” Sebastian asked incredulously. He looked at MG, “You _drink this?”_

“It's...school policy. We aren't supposed to feed off humans.”

Sebastian made a disgusted face. “Alright, well, I've heard enough. I'll just be leaving now. It was a pleasure meeting you both.”

Lizzie grabbed MG's arm, and he felt the brief sharp pain as she siphoned magic from him “ _Immobilus!_ ”

Sebastian stopped in his tracks, paralyzed by the spell. “Do you honestly think we're going to let an ancient, blood-starved vampire loose on Mystic Falls?” she asked him. “No. You're staying here until we know what you're up to.”

Sebastian couldn't speak, but he grunted in anger.

“MG, again, wait here with him. If the spell wears off, don't let him leave. I'll go get Professor Vardemus and see where we should go from here.”

“You could _maybe_ call up your dad.” MG offered.

“No way. My dad would lose his mind if he knew we did this.” Lizzie put up a barrier spell, keeping both of them trapped in the small cave, and then she stormed off out of the tunnel, again, leaving MG alone with this dude.

“So...I know you can't move or talk or anything. Sorry about that. But really, once we figure out you're safe to keep around, this will all blow over. And this is a pretty dope school? We have a smoothie bar...” MG paused, “Oh, you're old, you wouldn't know what that is. It's like fruit and stuff, and you put it in a blender. And then sometimes you put a bunch of unhealthy shit in there too, to cancel out the health benefits. It's not bad.”

Sebastian only glared at him in response. MG honestly had no idea what he was going to do if this guy regained his movement before Lizzie returned. Older vampires are stronger, right? But maybe being desiccated for so long had made him weaker? And he'd only had some old blood from the fountain, and a bag or two of animal blood. Maybe MG could take him in a fight, if it came down to it.

“Hurry up, Lizzie.” he muttered, nevertheless. He paced the room, wishing that he'd known ahead of time how much waiting there would be. And there was no cellphone service down here.

He sensed movement, and turned to see Sebastian's hand twitch, just slightly.

“Oh don't even. No way. The spell can't wear off that fast.”

Through gritted teeth, Sebastian managed to rasp out. “Seems that your lovely friend has underestimated me.”

“If you kill me, they definitely won't let you live. Lizzie will desiccate you so fast, and you'll be trapped down here again.” MG warned.

Sebastian's speech was a little clearer this time. “I'm not going to kill you, Milton. You did rescue me, after all. Allowing you to live is the least I can do.”

“How generous.”

“Don't expect too many generous acts from me.” Sebastian began to flex his fingers, and then moved his head from side to side. It was only a matter of time now. But at least knowing he wasn't about to die eased MG's anxiety a bit.

Within a few minutes, Sebastian regained his mobility. “Are there any more bags of that ghastly blood?” he asked.

“No, that was all she brought.”

Sebastian sighed, annoyed. “I'm _starving._ Give me your arm.”

“No way! I'm a vampire too, anyway. Remember?”

“But you're still full of blood. Far more than me, I'd wager. It won't completely satiate my hunger but it'll keep me from making a meal of your blonde friend when she comes back.”

MG hesitated. He had a point. Reluctantly, he held out his wrist, and Sebastian flashed over and grasped his wrist, surprisingly delicately, and brought it to his lips.

“Don't desiccate me.”

“I'm not an idiot, Milton.”

“For the last time, it's MG.”

Sebastian wrinkled his nose. “No. It's not.” And with that, he sank his fangs into MG's wrist. There was a slight stinging feeling, but then he felt the blood being drawn from his body. It didn't feel...bad. MG felt himself becoming a bit lightheaded, and having Sebastian in such close proximity, in such an intimate act, it was all a little much.

Sebastian withdrew his fangs, and caught MG just as he stumbled forward. “Sorry,” he whispered, “It was a bit more than I planned.” He helped MG to the ground and then sat down beside him.

“Has this room always spun like this?” MG murmured. Sebastian laughed.

“Oh dear, it was too much. I'm truly sorry.” He said, and the pulled MG in so that he was leaning against his shoulder now. It helped to have something solid to lean against. He closed his eyes.

“You'll need human blood to recover faster.” Sebastian told him.

“Can't. Can't risk it. I'm not...I'm not normal when I drink human blood.”

“Ah, yes. A ripper. You just need to control it. I'll help you.”

“It's under control.”

“If it were under control, you'd be able to feed without slaughtering every human you sink your teeth into.”

Maybe he had a point. But still, it just wasn't worth the risk. He'd killed Landon, and it was only a stroke of luck that Landon came back to life. The next person would not.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” Professor Vardemus said. Lizzie was beside him, and put her hands up to siphon the barrier spell from the room. “A new student, it seems?”


	5. Chapter 5

A lot had been happening in the past few days. It was hard to keep track of this new vampire that Professor Vardemus had for some reason decided to enroll as a student. For some reason unknown to him, MG was tasked with keeping an eye on the new vampire student. At the moment, this was kind of an inconvenient task considering there was something called a croatoan on the loose. It was always something with this school.

“Must I really be chained like an animal?” Sebastian demanded, for the hundredth time.

“We can't you have you running around trying to kill people, _like Kym, for instance,_ when we have much bigger problems.”

“First of all, I wouldn't have killed Kym. That's more...your thing, isn't it?” Sebastian raised his brow, and wore a cheeky expression that MG wanted to smack off his stupid face. “So what's this big bad problem you've got now. For a school that's supposed to protect supernatural creatures you're not doing so well.”

“I don't know. It's called a Croatoan?”

Sebastian sucked in a breath, looking visibly shaken for the first time. “No. It can't be.”

“What? You know about it?”

He rubbed his temples with his free hand. “Kind of. I remember bits and pieces. There was witch, Cassandra. She summoned it to find out...who was killing townspeople. It seeks out those who have secrets.” he grimaced, “She didn't it was me committing those crimes.”

“So how do we kill it?”

“Only the witch who summoned it can banish it once more.”

MG groaned, and ran out of the room to find Lizzie. “Stay put!” he warned Sebastian, “I'll stake you, I swear.”

Sebastian rolled his eyes. As if a year old vampire who lived on animal blood stood a chance against him. Besides, he wasn't really in any danger of going anywhere with damned enchanted chains keeping him here.

The Croatoan wants secrets. He definitely had secrets...

He yanked at the bindings a few more times before giving up. “Well, I suppose this is how it ends.” he muttered, “I'd always hoped for a more epic death.”

“God, you're so dramatic.” Kaleb said from the doorway. Kym lingered behind him. He walked in, and she started to follow but he put a hand up to block her path. “Stay out here.”

“How much damage can he do chained up?” she asked, brushing past Kaleb.

“Wouldn't you like to know.” Sebastian smirked. At that, Kaleb gave him a sharp glare, conveying a very obvious threat. This school was too much fun.

“MG should be back any minute now. And that one girl...Hope? She's here I guess. I think she's a witch.”

Within a moment, MG returned, “I couldn't get to them, but I called from another room. We need to hurry. They're running out of time.” and tried his best to pry more information out of Sebastian. But was like the events of that year were just flashes in his mind. He knew...he knew he cared for Cassandra. He knew there was a reason he was alive and she was not. But not know what that reason was...bothered him.

* * *

Out of nowhere, a gust of wind hit the room, and MG was awake long enough to realize it was thick with magic, but then the world went dark.

Sometime later, they all woke up. MG was hit with memories unfolding within his mind. The girl. Hope. Had they all somehow forgotten her? That meant she'd been thrown into Malivore, right? How could that have happened? He-

“I remember.” Sebastian said softly. MG had nearly forgotten. “It's no longer fragments...I remember it all. I know how to stop the Croatoan.” He pulled a necklace out from under his shirt. “She gave me this to protect me.”

“From the monster?”

“No...from the council. They asked Cassandra to find out what was killing people. But...she did love me, so she summoned something even worse. Something that would ferret out the lies those puritan hypocrites were concealing.

“It wiped out everyone...didn't it?” Kym asked.

“I tried to stop her.” he whispered. His eyes shown with tears. MG felt a pit in his stomach. He hated to know what happened next. “She was keeping my secret. I feared that she'd become a target. So she desiccated me to keep me safe. In that state, I watched the croatoan tear her limb from limb before she could dispel it. Unable to help her as she died.” A tear ran down his cheek. MG felt the urge to brush it away. But Kym and Kaleb were still there. He remained still.

Sebastian stood, looking at MG with intensity. He held the token in his hands. “This was hers. Which is why you must use it to ensure no one else suffers that same fate.”

Wordlessly MG stepped closer to Sebastian, and Sebastian lowered his head to allow the necklace to be removed. They shared a look...and there were so many things MG wanted to say in that moment. All he wanted was to comfort this broken man. But, again, his friends were in the room. And he really did need hurry in order to save everyone. He dashed off without a word.

* * *

Finally, after being assured that everyone was alive and well, Kaleb was unchaining him. Sebastian flexed his arms, glad to have some movement again. “Thanks for your help today.” Kaleb said reluctantly.

“Where is Milton?” Sebastian asked. He wanted to see for himself. The last time he'd seen him, he'd been running headlong into danger. Into the worst monster Sebastian had ever encountered. He wouldn't believe he was okay until he laid eyes on him.

“I think he's in his room. It's been a long day.”

Kaleb gave him quick directions, and Sebastian was off towards the room. On his way, he stopped short and couldn't help staring for a moment at two male students. Kissing. In public. And people were just going about their business.

He attempted to contain his shock and hurried to Milton Greasley's room. Milton was sitting on his bed, flipping through some strange book with pictures and little bubbles with words in them. People in colorful clothes were fighting on a few of the pages. Milton put the book down as he saw Sebastian walk in. “Hey. Sorry, I should have come back.” he said. “I just...”

“It's fine. I don't need pity, honestly. I wanted to be sure you were okay.”

Milton was definitely surprised by that.

“Can I..can I ask you something?” Sebastian asked.

“Sure.”

“In...this time...it's acceptable for a man and a man to...um...” he trailed off, bit his lip slightly, “Act in ways that a man and a woman might?”

MG stifled a laugh. “It's 2028, dude. People love whoever they want.” and then he furrowed his brow, “And you'll need to get used to it.”

“Oh! Oh no...nothing like that. I just...I think I like this world a bit more already.” Sebastian smiled. He would not dare move closer though. This was a secret he had harbored for...well, technically nearly 500 years, but only for about 2 years before he was desiccated. He'd never even told Cassandra of his secret attractions. He needed just a while longer. “Good night, Milton.” he said, and made his way to the door.

“MG.” Milton reminded him, though not quite so annoyed this time. Sebastian only smirked in response and closed the door. But as he walked away, fear ate away at him. Milton Greasley was a ripper. It would only be a matter of time before he slipped up. And then what would this school to do him?


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Skipping forward a bit, and after this I think I'll be deviating from canon and focusing primarily on MG and Sebastian, but we'll see how things go.

A few weeks later, Sebastian had passed his behavioral tests, and had been granted permission to stay. He wasn't particularly thrilled with the idea of staying at the school, under Alaric's watchful eye. He also wasn't even sure this school was as safe as it was cracked up to be. That Vardemus character? Turned out to be an impostor, right under their noses. Then there was this whole mess with an evil Christmas monster. Honestly, he felt he was probably the least of their worries.

He'd spent time with Elizabeth as well. She'd made it a point to spend a _lot_ of time with him. Honestly, she was...so eerily similar to Cassandra, it was nearly too much to bear. She brought back the worst memories. But he knew she wasn't that girl. He could never replace Cassandra, even though with Elizabeth it would clearly be so easy.

Also...it was clear that Elizabeth definitely had feelings for him. He was a bit reluctant to admit he did not reciprocate those feelings. He had his sights on someone else already. And now that he had confirmation that in this time it was fine, he was working up the nerve to fully pursue those feelings.

Maybe Lizzie would understand? Or maybe she'd find a reason to expel him from the school. She didn't seem to be the type to be messed with. An admirable quality, in most cases.

So Sebastian carried on with his secret...among a few others.

* * *

MG quietly followed Sebastian out to the cemetery. So far, the old-school vampire seemed to be on his best behavior. Lizzie was certainly convinced, as she let everyone know. Often. It was dusk about now, and Dr. Saltzman had instructed him to “keep an eye on things” And, well, now that he was back in charge, MG really did have to listen to him. Sebastian had passed his tests with flying colors, but Alaric remained suspicious. It made sense, MG reasoned, Saltzman had definitely had plenty of rough encounters with old world vampires.

He stayed several yards away, watching Sebastian casually stroll along the path. That's when a girl jogged by from the other direction, and Sebastian easily stepped in her way.

“Hello, darling.” he said sweetly, and removed her earphones. “I'm going need you to stand still, and don't scream, alright?”

Before MG could react, he watched Sebastian sink his teeth into the girl's neck. Even from this distance, the scent of blood drifted towards him. He gritted his teeth, and focused on breathing through his mouth.

“Sebastian. Let her go.” he said, stepping forward. Sebastian stopped, turned around, and wiped a bit of blood from his chin. He grinned.

“Milton. I knew that must be you tromping around behind me. I hope you weren't trying to be stealthy. I was wondering when you may join me. Come. There's plenty to go around.” he motioned to the girl's neck. MG stood his ground.

“Stop. Just walk away, and we can pretend this didn't happen.” MG warned him. “Please, Sebastian...don't ruin the progress you made.”

“Would you calm down? I'm not going to kill the girl. But I can't subsist on rabbit's blood forever. And neither should you, quite frankly.”

“I don't have a choice.” MG said slowly, “I need to maintain self-control.”

Sebastian rolled his eyes. And then he grabbed the girl by the waist, lifting her off the ground, and was right in front of MG in a heartbeat. The scent of blood was almost overwhelming now.

“You're never going to learn self-control like this, you know. If you never learn to control your thirst for human blood, you're just one accident away from a murderous rampage.”

“I think I can handle it on my own, thanks for the advice.” MG said sarcastically, he looked away from the blood dripping down the girl's neck. Tried to, anyway.

Sebastian ran two fingers along the side of her neck, collecting the dark red liquid. “You need to start slow. Build up a tolerance.”

“Stop it.” MG growled. He could feel his fangs elongating. He could feel the veins under his eyes pulsing under his skin.

“I'm trying to _help_ you, Milton. The last thing you need is to end up with a stake through your heart.”

MG shook his head, but he was entranced by the blood coating Sebastian's fingers. Slowly, Sebastian brought his hand up to MG's lips, just ever so slightly brushing the blood over his bottom lip. MG shuddered, and Sebastian was clearly enjoying himself.

“Trust me.” he encouraged, even though that sly smile suggested that MG should do anything but that. “I'm going to help you master this.”

He licked the blood off his lips without a second thought. He couldn't resist the impulse. The taste...it was intoxicating. His jaw tightened, and he looked at the bleeding wound on the girl's neck with intensity. Sebastian quickly turned to her. “Go. Now. Forget this night. Wear a scarf or something for a few days, will you?”

As instructed, she turned and continued her jog as if the incident had never happened. MG felt his feet start after her, but Sebastian grabbed him and held him back. “You see?” he said in MG's ear, “You get the blood you so desperately crave, and she gets to keep her life. It's a win-win. You just have to work on keeping it that way.”

“Can't...” MG said through gritted teeth. “Can't control it.”

“Yes you _can,_ Milton. And you'll never be truly safe if you don't get yourself under control. Enough of Dr. Saltzman's cold-turkey strategy. He's dooming you to failure. He's condemning you to death every moment you're at that school, don't you see?”

The girl was out of sight now. The scent of blood began to dissipate. MG sank to his knees. “I can't risk it.”

“Let me help you.” Sebastian urged, “You're the first friend I've found here. You got me out of that prison. Let me return the favor.”

He held out his hand, and reluctantly, MG took it and let Sebastian help him to his feet.

“If anyone finds out we're drinking human blood...”

“We're vampires. We're practically invincible.” Sebastian said with a shrug, and then he turned suddenly, gripping MG's shoulders. “I won't let them come near you.”

The intensity in his eyes. It was something MG had never seen before. Again, he was at a loss for words. An occurrence that only seemed to happen when Sebastian was near. And god...every touch made his brain go haywire. It was like electricity between them.

He'd had “deep” moments with Kaleb. But they were like brothers. That was different. This was...this something else entirely. How did Sebastian have this effect on him?

MG nodded. It was all he could manage. But Sebastian seemed satisfied with that. “It's a good start, Milton.” he patted him on the shoulder.

The following night, they ventured into Mystic Falls. MG had no idea why he had agreed to this. Sebastian was just..magnetic sometimes. You couldn't say no to him.

“So, I'm sure you're well aware. It's simple catch and release. You compel them, you feed from them, you make them forget.” Sebastian explained casually as he led MG to a bar towards the center of town.

“Now, and here's the important thing, some of these humans have vervain in their system. Dear Headmaster Saltzman really is no fun.” Sebastian sighed, “So try to compel them first, something simple, just to confirm there is no vervain. And then...have at it.”

“Have at it.” MG repeated, nervously.

“Well, to an extent. Take my word for it, you do not want to have dead bodies piling up. It ends rather poorly.” Yeah, MG was sure Sebastian knew all about that.

MG took a deep breath, and searched the room for a target. He pointed to a young man sitting alone at a table, absently scrolling through his phone. He was kind of attractive too, which certainly didn't hurt. “Okay. That one.”

“You have decent taste.” Sebastian commented. What was _that_ supposed to mean? “Alright, then. Let's see how you manage.”


	7. Chapter 7

MG had not moved at all in at least five minutes. Sebastian pretended to wait patiently at at first. And then he slightly nudged MG a bit. “Well, have at it then, good lord.”

“I'm _making a plan of attack_.” MG said sharply. That a lie. He was terrified. This could all go horribly wrong. He could kill half the people in here. Or more.

“What does the plan include, waiting here until you desiccate?” Sebastian asked, “Hmm?”

“Stop it. Just like...give me a sec, damn.”

“Oh, by all means, don't let me break your concentration.”

MG shot him a glare, and then walked over to the table where his chosen prey sat. As Sebastian had mentioned, it was really a gamble who was or wasn't on vervain in this town.

“You should come outside with me.” MG said, pushing the compulsion forward. He felt it take hold. The young man nodded, and stood. With very little effort, they were able to lead him to the back of the building.

“Okay...now...just don't scream or anything? I'm gonna bite you, but you won't even feel it. Right?”

Again the man nodded. He glanced at Sebastian, who nodded encouragingly. Oh god, he was really about to do this. He shouldn't It had ended so badly before. And he'd literally _killed_ Landon. He didn't want to kill again. But his throat still ached for human blood now that he'd had a small taste. His mind was in a frenzy just at the thought of it being so close right now.

“Step a little closer to my friend here,” Sebastian compelled the human with a grin, “And offer him a bit better access to your neck. He's just a bit shy. Tell him it's fine, really.”

“Yeah, totally fine.” the human replied automatically. MG felt his stomach turn. Sebastian did this effortlessly. It took all of MG's focus to just direct simple commands.

The temptation became too great to resist, and MG sank his teeth in greedily. In an instant, all thought of restraint was thrown out the window. Blood was all he could think about.

“Right then, that's probably a good stopping point.” he vaguely heard Sebastian say. He heard the words. But they made no sense. Sebastian may as well have been speaking another language.

“Milton.” Sebastian said again, louder this time. MG registered that this was indeed his name, and he did not care.

He felt Sebastian grab his head, and before he could fight him off, he felt the swift _crack_ of his neck, and then darkness.

* * *

“Alright so, I might have made a severe miscalculation on just how bad your ripper tendencies are.” he heard Sebastian's voice when he finally regained consciousness. His neck was still kind of sore. He groaned and realized he was somewhere soft. A bed? Carefully, MG opened his eyes, and recognized they were in some hotel room.”

“Where the hell-”

“Richmond. Not too far off. But I decided it'd be best to get out of town, and as far from vervain as we can for now.”

“This is kidnapping.”

“This is a necessary precaution. There were other humans around. I didn't know how many you'd tear through.”

He remembered the man, the bloodlust, the inability to stop himself. “Shit. Did I...is he...?”

“Milton, let's not focus on that right now.” Sebastian said softly, moving closer. MG wasn't sure he liked the sound of that.

“I have to go back to the school. I...this was a bad idea, okay? I'm sure this works for you, but it's just not going to work for me.”

“We can't go back. They'll know it was one of us.”

“This is all your fault.”

“It is.” Sebastian agreed, “I underestimated. But that's why it's even more important that you learn to control this. For god's sake, Milton, there are vampires out there who _will kill you_ simply for being an inconvenience. Do you plan to stay within the walls of the Salvatore school forever? Drinking rats' blood and debating vampire morality for eternity? Sounds dreadful.” He edged closer, and MG had the sudden urge to close the distance.

He shook that thought from his head. Sebastian was a traitor who caused him to _murder_ someone. He was not an ally.

“What's the alternative? Go on a murder-spree with you?”

“That's what we're trying to prevent here, Milton.”

“Don't act like you're suddenly reformed.” MG laughed bitterly. “Dr. Saltzman read about you, you know. _Sebastian the Merciless_? Mind telling me more about that?”

“People have written about me? Well, how very flattering.”

“Just answer the question.”

* * *

Sebastian leaned back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. He'd been working extremely hard to forget his old life. Trying to dredge up those memories again was not something he relished. But how could he gain Milton's trust if he did not at least try to be open?

“When I was 16...I'd been with the merchant ship for about 8 years. Awful life.” he grimaced. “They had been horrible to me, but at least...at least by then I was big enough to start fighting back. Even if I couldn't get away, at least they couldn't kick me around anymore and do as they pleased.”

He checked Milton's reaction. He didn't like to bring up that part of his history too often, for good reason.

The good part of the story. That's what he wanted to focus on instead. He smiled slightly as a memory came back to him. “We made port at this little town on the coast of France. It was lovely. Like a painting, you know?”

He'd wanted to stay there forever. They were going to be there for two weeks, something to do with a shipment issue. He hadn't cared at the time. He would run errands back and forth and take as much time as he felt was safe.

“There was a baker in town, and his son handled most of the financial side of things. I...I would find an excuse to stop in nearly every day for two weeks. I was too afraid to stay long, but...” This was embarrassing. Surely, no one wanted to hear this.

“But?” Milton asked softly. He laid back on the bed next to him, barely a couple of inches away. He could reach out and touch him if he wanted to. Maybe he did.

“Simon was captivating.” He still remembered that crooked smile, the way Simon talked about how badly he wanted to see other lands, be more than just a baker in a small seaside village. Sebastian took to embellishing his life, and exaggerating on the good parts, just to see that smile.

“On the last day, right before we were to leave, he convinced me to let him hide me. I should have said no. I'd tried and failed so many times, but I don't know...I thought maybe he could actually help.”

They found him, and tortured and killed Simon before Sebastian's eyes. To “teach him a lesson.” He certainly learned a lesson that day. They all deserved to die.

“A year later, I escaped for good, and was turned. I compelled my way into captaining a ship, and hunted them down. Some of them had left, joined other crews or settled on land. Didn't matter. I found all of them, and slaughtered them.” he said darkly, “ _Sebastian the Merciless?_ Please. I killed most of them rather quickly. It was only the worst offenders that had...very...slow deaths.”

He waited for Milton to respond. Telling the truth might change nothing, anyway. He was still a monster. He still let all of that rage control him, even after he'd done what he set out to do. He couldn't stop killing, even when he found solace with Cassandra. And in turn, he caused her death as well. Everyone he loved was destined to die.

Milton would be better off leaving while he had the chance.

“We can go back. I can tell them I killed the man, and tried to pin it on you. They'd believe it. They expect nothing else from me.” Sebastian said. But he felt Milton's hand brush against his own.

“No. We'll both get through this.” Then Milton grasped Sebastian's hand firmly. “Together.”

He wanted to believe it.


	8. Chapter 8

They fell asleep on the bed, keeping a reasonable distance still. MG wasn't certain he could trust Sebastian, and he had definitely gotten in way over his head. But...he felt for him. He'd loved two people and both had died tragically. Of course he was struggling, of course he wasn't perfect.

Well, physically maybe he was perfect. Way too perfect. Mg definitely took notice of that when he woke up that morning and took a moment to stare openly at Sebastian's half-naked body. He'd abandoned the blanket at some point during the night—and his shirt—and it was perhaps a bit too much.

As if on cue, Sebastian's eyes opened and Mg startled. His lips formed that stupid half-smile.

“I'm gonna go shower.” MG stuttered out and made a mad dash for the bathroom. After ten minutes under cold water, he finally had the willpower to step out and face Sebastian again. Hopefully he'd be wearing a shirt now.

There was a sharp tap at the door. “Can a man get some peace?” He called out. At least with a barrier between them, he was better at remembering the Sebastian was a pompous Dracula wannabe asshole.

“How much longer do you plan on hiding out in there? We have places to be, Milton.”

“I'm not _hiding_ , and-.” he threw open the door, “Where the hell do we have to be?”

“Somewhere far from here. We didn't make it that far from lovely Mystic Falls. I'd like to put some distance between myself and that headmaster, if you don't mind.”

“Do you really want to spend the rest of your life running?” MG asked. “We can go back, we can explain what happened-.”

“We're not doing that. Come on, we should procure a vehicle. I assume you know how to drive one of those beasts, yes?”

“I'm not stealing a car!”

“You'd be an awful pirate.” Sebastian shook his head, clearly baffled.

“I'm just saying, I'm not willing to add grand theft auto to my growing list of crimes—oh my god, did we pay for this room?”

Sebastian hesitated, which told MG all that he needed to know. _This is too much. You need to get out of here, and get back to school. Tell them everything and maybe you won't die a horrible death._

“I have no idea how this world's dollars and coins and 'credit cards' work, Milton. I had to improvise.”

Somehow he found himself in the parking lot of the hotel scanning for anyone who would be leaving or going to their car. He felt a knot in his stomach as he singled out a man who'd just locked his car and was walking away from it. Before he could work up the courage to compel him, Sebastian stepped in the man's path.

“Excuse me, my dear friend.” he began, in that impossibly hypnotic tone. Even without compulsion, there was just something that captivated you right away. “We find ourselves in need of transportation, and it just so happens your vehicle will do nicely.”

“You...you want my car?” the man asked slowly, blinking in confusion.

“Yes, it would appear so. I believe you'll want to hand me those keys now.”

“I want to hand you the keys.”

“You sure do, my good man.” Sebastian said with a grin. The man dropped the keys into Sebastian's outstretched hand. “Fantastic. Now go about your day. Forget we had this conversation.”

Off he went. Sebastian winked at MG and tossed him the keys.

“This is insane.” MG muttered. But he unlocked the car and climbed into the drivers' seat. Sebastian settled into the seat beside him and started messing around with the radio. “Music these days is...truly fascinating.” he muttered. MG laughed, in spite of everything.

They drove for a while, after Sebastian finally settled on a radio station, and MG picked directions at random. He had no idea where to turn. Obviously his family would be out of the question. Kaleb's family? But no, someone would look for them there.

“So tell me, Milton, what's your life story?” Sebastian asked after a while of silence.

“Why would I tell you anything?”

“I've told you most of my story. Fair's fair.” he shrugged, “And I'm curious. I want to know all there is to know about Milton Greasley: Teenage Vampire Heartthrob.”

MG had to laugh. “Heartthrob? Yeah, sure.”

“You have to be willing to open up if we're going to be stuck with each other for a while.”

“There's not much to tell. I died, I became a vampire, I came to Salvatore.” MG gripped the steering wheel, “I don't talk to my parents anymore.”

“And why is that?”

“It's complicated.” MG sighed. Sebastian silently waited until MG finally said, “My dad is a pastor, and my mom is apparently part of some secret organization that hates supernaturals.”

“Well, that's quite a bit of bad luck.”

“That's one way to put it.”

“At least I do know something about terrible families.” Sebastian said knowingly, “I went back and killed mine, of course, but I imagine that being the do-gooder you are, that's out of the question.”

“Correct.”

Sebastian clapped a hand on his shoulder, “Well if you ever change your mind, let me know.”

MG was utterly baffled by this exchange. Sebastian clearly seemed to think he was making a show of trust, and when MG thought of it like that it was...nice, kind of. Not exactly ideal, but at least his heart was in the right place. Maybe.

Several hours later, they arrived in New York City. Sebastian gazed out the window at the crowded city and tall buildings and looked a tad bit sick. “You alright over there?” MG asked.

“I think I'll pick the next destination.” he said warily. They parked the car and, after a lot of back and forth, decided to ditch it. “That dude's gonna wanna know how it got over 200 miles away.”

“And he and the proper authorities can have a marvelous time figuring that out. But we can also get another vehicle. Come on, we should find somewhere to stay for a while.” then that devilish grin appeared on his face, “And then maybe we'll grab a bite to eat.”

“Oh, I don't kn-”

“Nonsense. I have a completely airtight plan this time to ensure you don't accidentally slaughter anyone.” Sebastian assured him. He slung an arm over MG's shoulder. “Trust me.” he pleaded. Against his better judgment, MG sighed and agreed. He was already breaking every rule he ever had, he might as well embrace it.


End file.
